Greene King pledges zero waste to landfill by 2020

18-Jun-2017 - Last updated on 19-Jun-2017 at 09:22 GMT

Waste commitment: Greene King has set a goal for zero waste to landfill by 2020

Greene King has set a new target of sending zero waste to landfill by 2020, as the pubco predicts the issue of waste will become “more and more pressing” for the sector.

Zero waste to landfill is a strategy where no waste streams go to landfill and binned materials are recycled or reused.

Greene King partnered with waste management company SWR in April 2016 to reduce landfill waste from the managed estate.

The pubco has introduced a number of initiatives across its managed pubs, including a waste recycling backhaul scheme where pub teams separate waste on-site into bins for food, cardboard, glass and other material, which is returned via its dedicated distribution network. This has reduced the number of general waste bins by 42%, said the pubco, with almost 8,000 tonnes of food diverted from landfill across the estate.

Real issue for hospitality

Greene King group trading director Matt Todd said the company was really pleased with progress towards its goal of zero waste to landfill by 2020.

“Waste is a real issue for the hospitality industry and with the total eating-out market set to grow from an estimated £87.1bn in 2016 to £94.1bn in 2019, it is set to become more and more pressing,” he said.